Thirteen Dances
by JanuarySunflowers
Summary: As the old year ends and the new year begins, the Sohma's participate in a ceremonial dance.


**1991: Horse and Ram**

They were too little to really understand the ceremony, of course. But the maids had tried to impress the seriousness of it to her, and so the little girl held the baby by his chubby fists and swayed carefully with him, feeling a bit self-conscious. Her parents had washed and combed her hair out and her pinafore was pressed with starch.

She was glad of this; it was the first time they'd acknowledged her in days after… the incident.

Hiro tripped and nearly fell, but she caught him in time, holding him up. She felt very important, if a bit lost.

**1992: Ram and Monkey**

The young teenager balanced the little boy on the toes of his silken slippers as they swayed to sweetly piped and plucked music. This couldn't be a long dance; Hiro was already looking sleepy.

Smiling warmly, the monkey lifted his cousin in his arms and balanced him on one shoulder. Hiro let out a sound of surprise and clutched at his shoulder, but he needn't have worried. Ritsu's balance was excellent.

Their outfits were stunning. Yards and yards of fine, deeply colored fabric branching off into elaborate designs and tiny stitch work. Ritsu felt beautiful in his gown. For just a moment, the fears and stresses of the world that seemed to crush him in his regular life fell away. _When I dress like this, I feel powerful._

The dance he performed with the toddler on his back took his family's breath away.

**1993: Monkey and Bird**

The monkey in his arms was lovely and androgynous and graceful as a forest nymph. They swayed together, Ritsu's back pressed to his chest and their hands crossed over a silk belt. They spun and for just a second his partner's feet left the ground; he had to grip hard to keep the younger boy from falling as they worked to represent the agility and playfulness of the primate spirit.

He felt a sharp pain in his foot as he set his cousin down again, having been trodden on, and brief panic flashed in the monkey's eyes. _I'm so sorry…_

He shook his head. _It's nothing_.

As the music swelled to its final crescendo, Ritsu bowed deeply and backed away, handing the year over to him.

_Can they see I'm not one of them anymore? _Kureno wondered worriedly as his family clapped for him.

**1994: Bird and Dog**

The timing was positively _terrible_.

But perhaps the timing was never meant to work out for them. They'd been close once… As wide-eyed children with hope in their hearts and time on their hands. But now, _now_…

Shigure's fingers on the teenager's waist were no doubt bruising when he lifted the smaller male and spun about the softly lit stage, giving him the illusion of flight. He set him down lightly enough, but when Kureno linked his thin arms around his neck and pulled him down, mimicking an intimate embrace, it was all he could do not to growl.

Both men were aware of the dark eyes watching them. The girl who was supposed to be a boy had tasted her first wine that night and smiled at them brightly, if a little fuzzily. Rivals for her affection, both knew which man had caught her attention more these days.

The dance ended and Kureno slowly wilted to the floor, hands over his chest in mimicry of deep hibernation… or death. As the figure of the New Year, Shigure took great satisfaction in planting his boot victoriously on the boy's chest.

**1995: Dog and Boar**

Kagura's dancing was all exuberance and little grace. The thirteen year old launched herself at her cousin and it was all he could do to catch her. It was rapid-fire and dizzying, and she smiled like she was the happiest girl in the world.

She didn't seem to think twice as her cousin seized her hips in his large hands and brought the two of them together, gliding rambunctiously in a facsimile of a tango. And perhaps she didn't notice just how close his face was to hers.

She didn't notice, but everybody watching did. Several family members shifted uncomfortably in their seats; all but one. Intense brown eyes glowered at the dog over the boar's head.

For Kagura, dancing was all about the fun and the motion.

**1996: Boar and Rat**

Yuki's older cousin was a good friend, and he felt comfortable with her, but he was still a middle-school boy. A part of him squirmed uncomfortably at the clasp and parting of their hands.

Putting a sweating arm around her back, they pranced and bounced like frolicking children, and he caught a glimpse of her face under her wild brown hair, swirling with motion. She was beaming, pink-cheeked and ecstatic. For just a moment, he forgot his self-consciousness. It had been a long, _long _time since he'd felt happy.

"Yun-yun!" she whispered happily in his ear when he dipped her down low. "Your smile makes the whole room brighter."

The entire banquet seemed caught in the energy of their dance; hands clapped and feet stomped in time with the lively beat. Kagura sized his hand and pulled him down in a bow with her, and then she backed offstage, leaving him to begin the next twelve-year cycle.

**1997: Rat and Ox**

Haru's dancing was… intense. It looked more like fighting than anything else. Heavy and just bordering on aggressive, Yuki was having a hard time keeping up. The darkness in his eyes was intimidating. Under the gentle light of the chandelier, heavy shadows crossed his face.

Yuki didn't know what had happened to push the boy into 'black' territory, but he wished it had waited for the dance to end. He was pinned between two arms and a mouth opened, the sensation of skin against skin as lips brushed his neck made him shudder.

Their audience tittered nervously when Yuki was flung none-too-gently to the ground and the younger boy stood over him, possessive and dominant and fierce, claiming the upcoming year for his own.

**1998: Ox and Tiger**

The nine-year-old always felt safe when she was with her older cousin. Even now, he held her like she was something precious, swaying gently on the floor. He lifted her up until she was on top of his feet and then spun in a gentle circle, hands at her back. A strand of hair fell into her face and he brushed it back for her.

Though she'd never admit it, Hatsuharu was Kisa Sohma's first crush.

Though she'd never know it, it was seeing the ox treat her so gently that solidified the feelings of someone else in the audience, as well. Two hearts beat a little faster in the darkened theatre seats; one with envy, the other with affection.

He lifted her up onto his shoulders once the tinkling little melody had ended, giving her a high view of the New Year that was hers to lead.

**1999: Tiger and Rabbit**

There was a hushed gasp and a murmured, "how sweet," when Momiji and Kisa Sohma walked onstage, hand-in-hand. The young rabbit could definitely feel the tension in the room today; more so than usual. One of the seats sat empty and cold, and the sight made him feel several confusing and upsetting things.

"Where is Yuki—" Kisa whispered to him, but he shushed her with a finger on her lips. The music buzzed within him, warm and low. He'd recorded their practice song himself, with his own violin playing, and he saw recognition spark in several members of the audience.

Taking his younger cousin's hand in his, they glided smoothly together. He twirled her, with her balancing on one tip-toe. Everybody smiled despite the tension in the room; he practically saw their reactions in their eyes. _Cute_. _Innocent. Babies._

But the eyes of their God stared straight through them, barely paying any attention at all.

**2000: Rabbit and Dragon**

They hadn't had much time to practice. Well, the dragon ruefully accepted, the rabbit had _tried _to get him to practice. "Come on, Ha'ri," he had begged almost every day for the past two months. "We really need to…"

But he'd been so busy. _So-and-so was sick, such-and-such might need memory suppression, I need something_… Akito had been relentless with demands lately. The end of the decade had brought with it a fair share of problems for the Sohma family, and those problems all had the same name: Tohru Honda.

So what if they hadn't had time to script a new dance routine, and had hurriedly researched a traditional one? So what if the music was practically ancient, from the family vaults? Maybe a little tradition, a little reminder of the old days, would put the head of the family in a better mood.

At least everybody had actually made it to the banquet.

**2001: Dragon and Snake**

Well, Hatori thought a little ruefully, at least Ayame was having fun.

**2002: Snake and Horse**

She felt like nothing in his arms. Before, about ninety percent of her anatomy seemed made up of her long, tumbling mane of hair. But with that gone it became even more apparent just how malnourished and small she really was.

Perhaps he was just feeling strange because he'd helped her slip into the outfit he'd designed and had seen the mess her body had fallen into. Every time he blinked, the many scars on her back flashed into his mind.

But that wasn't all that seemed off about his once ferocious cousin. In his arms and as she moved, Isuzu seemed… calm. Serene. Even when she became weak and sagged heavily against him, her forehead shining under the light, she didn't shove him away or snarl like she normally would have.

_She's changed, _he realized. _We all have…_

He hadn't quite put the pieces together yet. Why just looking at Hiro and Momiji produced the same feelings of loss in him as Kureno always did.

But he'd begun to hear it too, creaking and groaning in the back of his mind.

The sound of change.

The sound of _breaking_.

_Fin_

**Happy new year everybody! Goodbye 2013, year of the snake, and welcome 2014 year of the horse! I hope you enjoyed reading this little fic as much as I enjoyed writing it. I wish you pleasant waves for the upcoming year. - JS**


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